AI agents explained
What a quote and estimate agent does
Step through an example
Pick an example business
Example: Bathroom remodeler · Dallas
Website quote requestExample - Name: Karen Whitfield · (214) 555-0186
- Project: replace tub with a walk-in shower
- Bathroom: about 5 ft x 8 ft, second floor
- Photos: 4 attached
- Submitted: 10/12/2026, 9:02 PM
Step 1 of 5
Reads the request and the photos, and works out what it still needs to know before anyone can price the job.
Agent does this
Email to the customerExample - Thanks, Karen. A few quick questions so we can price this properly:
- 1. Tile to the ceiling, or to shower height?
- 2. Glass door, or an open entry?
- 3. Are you keeping the current vanity?
Step 2 of 5
Asks only the questions your team would ask, in your tone, and waits for the answers before going further.
Agent does this
Customer replyExample - Karen Whitfield · 10/13/2026, 7:41 AM
- Tile to the ceiling, glass door, and we're keeping the vanity.
- Also, there's a soft spot in the floor next to the tub.
Step 3 of 5
A soft floor could mean water damage under the tub, which changes the job. That needs an expert eye, so it flags it to your estimator instead of guessing.
Asks a person
Draft estimateExample - Demolition and haul-away: $1,350.00
- Shower pan, waterproofing, tile to ceiling: $7,900.00
- Frameless glass door: $1,650.00
- Plumbing: $2,100.00
- Subfloor repair: to be priced after the site visit
- Estimate: $13,000.00 · lump sum, sales tax on materials included
Step 4 of 5
Builds the draft from your price list, shows which rule each line came from, and leaves the subfloor unpriced until your estimator has looked.
Agent does this
Waiting for your approvalExample - Whitfield bathroom · draft estimate $13,000.00
- Site visit booked: 10/15/2026, 10:00 AM
- Flag: soft floor next to the tub, check the subfloor
- Approve · Edit · Visit first
Step 5 of 5
Your estimator settles the price after the site visit, edits the draft if needed and approves it. Only then does it go to Karen.
A person decides
Example: Freight forwarder · Felixstowe
EmailExample - From: Oliver Grant, Grant & Hale Furniture Ltd
- Subject: Quote, 2 pallets to Rotterdam
- 2 pallets, 120 x 100 x 150 cm, about 180 kg each
- Collection: Leicester, week of 19/10/2026
- Received: Wed 14/10/2026, 10:05
Step 1 of 5
Pulls out what matters for the price: pallet sizes and weights, where it's collected, where it's going and when. Then it asks Oliver what the goods are and what they're worth.
Agent does this
Your rate cardExample - Groupage, UK to the Netherlands: rate per pallet space
- Collection zone: Midlands
- Export customs entry: fixed fee
- Quotes valid: 7 days from issue
Step 2 of 5
Looks up your current rates for the route and adds the customs paperwork your rules say every EU shipment needs.
Agent does this
Email replyExample - Oliver Grant · Wed 14/10/2026, 13:30
- Upholstered dining chairs, value about £18,000.
- Could you also deliver into the client's showroom? It's on the second floor, no lift.
Step 3 of 5
A second-floor delivery without a lift isn't on your rate card, so it asks your pricing team how they want to handle it rather than guessing.
Asks a person
Draft quoteExample - Collection, Leicester: £145.00
- Groupage, 2 pallet spaces to Rotterdam: £410.00
- Export customs entry: £65.00
- Showroom delivery, second floor: to be priced by your team
- Import clearance and duties, Netherlands: paid by the receiver
- Subtotal: £620.00 · VAT: zero-rated (international freight)
Step 4 of 5
Builds the quote from your rate card and leaves the showroom delivery as a line for your pricing team to fill in.
Agent does this
Waiting for your approvalExample - Grant & Hale · 2 pallets to Rotterdam
- Draft: £620.00 plus showroom delivery
- Valid 7 days from issue
- Approve · Edit · Call customer
Step 5 of 5
Your pricing team prices the showroom delivery, checks the draft and approves it. The agent sends it only after that, and checks in if Oliver goes quiet.
A person decides
Example: Homewares store · Hobart
Website chatExample - From: Sam Kowalski, Harbour Lane Café
- We'd like 120 of your stoneware mugs and 60 side plates for a new café.
- Do you do trade pricing? We need them by 06/11/2026.
- Sent: Mon 19/10/2026, 2:14 pm
Step 1 of 5
Recognizes a trade order, checks stock for both items and whether the date is realistic.
Agent does this
Your trade rulesExample - Trade pricing: 50 or more of one item
- Anything below trade price: owner approval
- Local delivery in Hobart: free over A$500
Step 2 of 5
Applies your trade prices to the order and notes that local delivery is free at this size.
Agent does this
Stock checkExample - Stoneware mug, sand: 84 in stock · 200 due from supplier 28/10/2026
- Side plate, sand: 75 in stock
- Note: this supplier's dates have slipped before
Step 3 of 5
There aren't enough mugs until the next shipment, and that supplier has been late before. Promising the date is a risk for your team to weigh, so it asks before replying.
Asks a person
Draft quoteExample - 120 x stoneware mug @ A$14.50: A$1,740.00
- 60 x side plate @ A$16.00: A$960.00
- Local delivery: free
- Total: A$2,700.00 (incl. GST A$245.45)
- Delivery by 06/11/2026 if the supplier shipment arrives on time
Step 4 of 5
Drafts the quote with your trade prices and a delivery date that's honest about the stock.
Agent does this
Waiting for your approvalExample - Harbour Lane Café · A$2,700.00 incl. GST
- Risk: 36 mugs depend on the 28/10 shipment
- Option: plates now, mugs when the shipment lands
- Approve · Edit · Call customer
Step 5 of 5
The owner decides whether to promise the date, offer a split delivery or adjust the price. Only then does the quote go to Sam.
A person decides
What it connects to
- Your price list or rate card, in a spreadsheet or quoting software
- Website forms, email and chat
- Stock and supplier systems
- Accounting software, to turn approved quotes into invoices
- Your CRM, to follow up quotes that go quiet
Where a person stays in charge
- You can approve or edit every quote before it's sent, or let it send only the simplest ones on its own.
- You can set the price list, the minimums and any discounts it's allowed to use.
- You can have it flag anything unusual, like a job it hasn't seen before, instead of pricing it.
- You can keep discounts, deposits and payment terms as decisions only a person makes.
What we'd need from you to build one
- Your price list or rate card, and the rules of thumb you use on top of it.
- A handful of past quotes, so the drafts match how you write them.
- The questions you always ask before you can price a job.
- Who approves quotes, and how quickly your customers expect an answer.
Other jobs an agent can do
Customer inquiry agent
Answers the questions customers ask every day, gathers the details you need, and passes the real leads to you.
Follow-up and chasing agent
Sends polite reminders about unpaid invoices, missing documents and quiet leads on your schedule, and stops as soon as someone replies.
See how we build it and what it costs · All AI agents explained
Common questions
Will it get prices wrong?
It works from your price list and rules, and shows the working behind each line so a draft is quick to check. You can approve every quote before it goes out.
What about jobs that need a site visit?
It can gather everything up front, help book the visit and prepare a draft with the unknowns left open, so your estimator only fills in what they had to see in person.
Can it follow up quotes that go quiet?
Yes. You can have it check in politely after a few days, then hand the lead to your team if there's still no answer.
Does it replace our quoting software?
No. It can work with the software or spreadsheet you already use, and put drafts where your team already looks.